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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. pop — music
  3. present — there
  4. file — a line of people
  5. scale — size or range
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. pop — to visit
  8. scale — in music
  9. file — a document
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. pop — soda
  12. bear — the animal
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. squash — to crush
  16. tear — from crying
  17. present — the time now
  18. present — a gift
  19. file — a tool
  20. bear — the animal
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. squash — the sport
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com